Bill Romanowski

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Bill Romanowski
Date of birth	April 2, 1966
Place of birth	Vernon, Connecticut
Position(s)	Linebacker
College	Boston College
NFL Draft	1988 / Round 3/ Pick 80
Pro Bowls	1999, 1997
Awards	1985 Cotton Bowl MVP
Honors	4 Super Bowl rings
Statistics	Pro Football Reference CBS.com DatabaseFootball
Team(s)
1988-1993 1994-1995 1996-2001 2002-2003	San Francisco 49ers Philadelphia Eagles Denver Broncos Oakland Raiders

William Thomas Romanowski (born April 2, 1966 in Vernon, Connecticut) is a former American football player. A linebacker, he graduated from Rockville High School in 1984, Boston College in 1988, and then went on to a 16-year career in the NFL, playing for the San Francisco 49ers(1988-1993), Philadelphia Eagles(1994-1995), Denver Broncos(1996-2001), and Oakland Raiders(2002-2003). He played 243 consecutive games, an NFL record among linebackers, won 4 Super Bowl Championships, and is the only linebacker to start 5 Super Bowl Games(Super Bowl XXIII, Super Bowl XXIV, Super Bowl XXXII, Super Bowl XXXIII and Super Bowl XXXVII). In his rookie season, Romanowski made a big impact for the 49ers in Super Bowl XXIII, recording a third quarter interception that set up a San Francisco field goal.

Romanowski, aka "Romo-cop," finished his 16 NFL seasons with 18 interceptions, which he returned for a net total of 98 yards and 1 touchdown. He also recovered 18 fumbles and recorded 39 sacks. Romanowski was a Pro Bowl selection twice, in 1996 and 1998.

Contents 1 Altercations 2 Drug charges 3 Lawsuit by Marcus Williams 4 After the NFL 5 Personal

[edit] Altercations

Romanowski has been involved in numerous altercations with both teammates and opponents. In 1989, while with the 49ers, he brawled with offensive tackle Harris Barton after Barton had taken exception to a hit Romanowski had made on wide receiver Jerry Rice during a practice session. In 1995, while with the Eagles, he was ejected from a game — and subsequently fined $4,500 — for kicking Arizona Cardinals running back Larry Centers in the head. Three more incidents occurred during the 1997 season while he played for the Broncos: In the first, he was fined $20,000 after his hit on then-Carolina Panthers quarterback Kerry Collins in a preseason game resulted in Collins sustaining a broken jaw; in the second, Romanowski spat in the face of 49ers wide receiver J.J. Stokes in a regular-season game played in December on a Monday night in response to Stokes' taunting; and in the third — in the AFC Championship game — Romanowski taunted Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kordell Stewart following an interception Stewart had thrown in the third quarter of the game, won by Denver. Two years later, while still with the Broncos, he was fined a total of $42,500 for three illegal hits plus a punch thrown at Kansas City Chiefs tight end Tony Gonzalez, and was also fined an undisclosed amount for throwing a football at Bryan Cox of the New York Jets, the ball hitting him in the crotch area.

[edit] Drug charges

In August of 2000, Romanowski was indicted by a grand jury in Denver for allegedly obtaining phentermine, a diet drug with stimulant properties, under false pretenses; he was later acquitted of this charge, but during the trial he made statements to the media many regarded as being racially insensitive. Another on-the-field incident, resulting in a $7,500 fine, followed in 2001. He was also linked to drug use in the book Game of Shadows.

[edit] Lawsuit by Marcus Williams

On August 24, 2003, as a member of the Raiders, Romanowski punched backup tight end Marcus Williams in the face during a preseason scrimmage; Williams sustained a broken eye socket and was ultimately forced to retire, leading to Williams filing a civil lawsuit against Romanowski, seeking $3.8 million in damages. Following a three-week trial, a jury awarded Williams $340,000 in compensatory damages on March 22, 2005.

[edit] After the NFL

Bill Romanowski was featured in the 2005 remake The Longest Yard starring Adam Sandler.

Romanowski has also been linked to the BALCO steroid scandal, and in an interview with Scott Pelley that aired on CBS-TV's 60 Minutes on October 17, 2005, he adamantly denied using steroids except during the last three years of his NFL career. Skeptics dispute this claim for obvious reasons, including ex-teammate and former all-pro tight end Shannon Sharpe, who is convinced Romanowski had been on steroids his entire career. Sharpe was the recipient of a dislocated elbow at the hands of Romanowski, in what Sharpe believes was a deliberate attempt to break his arm. Former Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino called Romanowski "sad" regarding his admittance. In the same interview, Romanowski also acknowledged that he once intentionally broke the finger of New York Giants running back Dave Meggett during a pile up. He said that at the time of the action, he had no regrets about injuring an opponent in that way, though at the time of his interview, looking at the incident in retrospect, he felt that what he had done was "awful".

Romanowski published an autobiography, Romo: My Life on the Edge, co-written with writer/broadcaster Adam Schefter and Phil Towle, in 2005. He also added his voice and likeness to the video game Blitz: The League, which was released in late 2005.

Romanowski was seen yelling at a 12 year old at a Pee Wee Football game when the kid tripped his son. The referees had to separate Romanowski from the kid and he was banned.

[edit] Personal

• Musical Interests: The Beatles, Elton John, John Denver.
• One of his jobs as a teen was a farmer (milking cows) which was a convenience because in his autobiography, he claims he drank a gallon of milk every day since his freshman year of High School.